Consumer group outraged by Girl Scouts’ new partnership with Barbie

Barbie seems to get around. America’s favorite plastic doll with an impossibly tiny waist appeared in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue last year and now she’s running around with the Girl Scouts. A consumer group that aims to protect children from harmful advertising isn’t happy about Barbie’s most recent adventure. Read on for the full story.

The Girl Scouts of America and Mattel are continuing to move forward with a new partnership despite criticism.

Last year, the Girl Scouts of America introduced the three-year partnership with the Barbie “Be Anything, Do Everything” badge and this month a cookie-selling, sash-wearing Barbie hit store shelves.

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC), an advocacy group that works for the rights of children to grow up without being undermined by commercial interests, thinks Barbie and the Girl Scouts are poorly matched. In a statement released this spring the group stated:

For generations, the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) has been a powerful force for good in the in the lives of girls. Parents trust the Girl Scouts to provide positive role models and foster their daughters’ healthy development. That’s why it’s troubling that GSUSA received $2 million from Mattel to promote the Barbie brand to young Scouts.

The Girl Scouts partnered with Barbie because the organization wants to communicate to girls that they can explore a variety of career opportunities and grow up to be whatever they want to be. With more than 150 careers on her resume, Barbie is in a sense the ultimate career woman. Aerobics instructor, presidential candidate, registered nurse, pilot, police officer, swim suit model — you name it, and she’s been it. Barbie’s a busy girl.

“Like Girl Scouts, Barbie is an American icon,” Girl Scouts’ CEO Anna Marie Chavez said in a statement. “Together, we are teaching girls that their futures are wide open with possibilities, and that they can accomplish anything they set their sights on in their careers.”

To earn the new Barbie badge, Girl Scouts are encouraged to explore a variety of careers by completing the “I can be…” booklet that’s filled with images of Barbie. This is the first-ever Girl Scout badge sponsored by a corporation and the CCFC points out that the badges are turning girls into “walking advertisements.”

Barbie and the Girl Scouts also released a new “I can be…” web game that allows girls to dress Barbies for different careers, and the CCFC says it’s no more than an “interactive ad.”

This week, a collection of three cookie-pushing Girl Scout Barbies—Nikki, Teresa and Barbie—became available online and they’ll rolling out in stores nationwide through mid-August. The brown-haired Nikki doll, for example, sports pink capris, a crisp white blouse, a green sash with insignia and badges, and high-heeled hiking boots. Also included: mini boxes of Girl Scout Cookies and a handy bag imprinted with the five skills girls learn through the cookie program.

The CCFC feels a fashion doll is a terrible role model for young girls. The group points to a recent study published in the journal Sex Roles revealing that girls who play with Barbies tend to see fewer career options available to them than they do for boys.

“This important study demonstrates that using Barbie to teach girls that they can ‘Be Anything’ may actually have the opposite effect,” CCFC’s Dr. Susan Linn said in a statement. “We hope this research will help convince GSUSA to end its ill-conceived partnership with Mattel.”

Is Barbie all that bad? While I feel that Barbie presents an impossible body type, I’m not one of those parents who entirely forbid my daughter from playing with the doll. When the next-door neighbor dumped a pile of used Barbies on our front doorstep, I begrudgingly allowed them to enter the house. My daughter was delighted and enjoyed sewing clothes for the dolls. Because they were old and tattered, I allowed her to give the dolls haircuts. We had some conversations about how the dolls’ waist and boobs were unrealistic. She responded with something like, “I know, Mom, but Barbies are fun!”

I don’t think my daughter was traumatized from playing Barbies, and, honestly, I think they offered her a lot of fun and did little if any harm, but I do think the Girl Scouts are making a mistake in partnering with Barbie. Our kids live in an over-commercialized world with ads hitting them in the face everywhere they turn. Materialism is becoming a core American value and as a result kids spend their days dreaming of all the stuff they want, whether it’s a new video game console or the latest sugary breakfast cereal. I wish the Girl Scouts could remain a space free of consumerism. Yes, cookie sales bring a consumerism spirit to the organization but let’s keep it at Do-si-dos and Trefoils.

While my own kids haven’t joined the Girl Scouts, I was part of a troop as a kid and remember sewing pillows, making a dried flower book, baking cookies, visiting a veterinarian, going on a camping trip and doing all sorts of fun activities to earn the badges that filled my sash. The charming innocence and beauty of this list gets lost, when you add “Dressing Barbie up as a teacher.”

But despite criticism, Girl Scout and Mattel plan to charge on with the three-year partnership. SFGate reached out to Mattel to comment on the controversy and they released the following:

As an iconic brand, we continue to maintain relevance by speaking to multiple audiences. The Girl Scouts Barbie is a program created for girls.

Maybe some good might come of all this? Maybe the Girl Scouts will get Barbie to eat a Samosa and her impossibly skinny waistline will expand.

Mattel introduced many Barbies with dark complexions in the 60s and 70s but they weren't genuinely African-American because their heads were made with the molds of the Caucasian dolls.

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Mattel introduced many Barbies with dark complexions in the 60s and 70s but they weren't genuinely African-American because their heads were made with the molds of the Caucasian dolls.

Mattel introduced many Barbies with dark complexions in the 60s and...70s but they weren't genuinely African-American because their heads...were made with the molds of the Caucasian dolls.

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The 1990 launch of Oreo Fun Barbie was met with outrage since Oreo is a derogatory term in the African-American community.

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The 1990 launch of Oreo Fun Barbie was met with outrage since Oreo is a derogatory term in the African-American community.

The 1990 launch of Oreo Fun Barbie was met with outrage since Oreo is...a derogatory term in the African-American community.

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Many parents thought Midge, Barbie's pregnant best friend, sent the wrong message because she didn't come with a spouse.

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Many parents thought Midge, Barbie's pregnant best friend, sent the wrong message because she didn't come with a spouse.

Many parents thought Midge, Barbie's pregnant best friend, sent the...wrong message because she didn't come with a spouse.

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Spin the dial on Growing Up Skipper's back and her figure matures. The point was to teach kids about puberty but parents didn't like this doll who grew breasts.

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Spin the dial on Growing Up Skipper's back and her figure matures. The point was to teach kids about puberty but parents didn't like this doll who grew breasts.

Spin the dial on Growing Up Skipper's back and her figure matures. The...point was to teach kids about puberty but parents didn't like this...doll who grew breasts.

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Sleepytime Gal Barbie came with a dieting book. One of the pages supposedly read, "Don't eat."

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Sleepytime Gal Barbie came with a dieting book. One of the pages supposedly read, "Don't eat."

Sleepytime Gal Barbie came with a dieting book. One of the pages...supposedly read, "Don't eat."

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Teen Talk Barbie said 270 phrases, including "Math class is tough."

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Teen Talk Barbie said 270 phrases, including "Math class is tough."

Teen Talk Barbie said 270 phrases, including "Math class is tough."

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Share a Smile Becky, who came in a pink wheelchair, was a thoughtful idea, but her chair didn't fit into the elevator of the Barbie Dream House.

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Share a Smile Becky, who came in a pink wheelchair, was a thoughtful idea, but her chair didn't fit into the elevator of the Barbie Dream House.

Share a Smile Becky, who came in a pink wheelchair, was a thoughtful...idea, but her chair didn't fit into the elevator of the Barbie Dream...House.

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In 2003 Saudi Arabia banned the sale of Barbie and introduced Fulla, designed to be more acceptable to the Middle Eastern market.

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In 2003 Saudi Arabia banned the sale of Barbie and introduced Fulla, designed to be more acceptable to the Middle Eastern market.

In 2003 Saudi Arabia banned the sale of Barbie and introduced Fulla,...designed to be more acceptable to the Middle Eastern market.

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In 2009 Mattel released Totally Tattoo Barbie, which came with tattoos to stick on the plastic body, including a tramp stamp to put on the doll's lower back.

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In 2009 Mattel released Totally Tattoo Barbie, which came with tattoos to stick on the plastic body, including a tramp stamp to put on the doll's lower back.

In 2009 Mattel released Totally Tattoo Barbie, which came with tattoos...to stick on the plastic body, including a tramp stamp to put on the...doll's lower back.

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Black Canary Barbie was panned for looking downright trashy.

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Black Canary Barbie was panned for looking downright trashy.

Black Canary Barbie was panned for looking downright trashy.

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The FBI issued a warning in 2010 that the video camera in Barbie Video Girl's chest could be used to produce child pornography, although there was "no reported evidence that the doll had been used in any way other than intended."

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The FBI issued a warning in 2010 that the video camera in Barbie Video Girl's chest could be used to produce child pornography, although there was "no reported evidence that the doll had been used in any way other than intended."

The FBI issued a warning in 2010 that the video camera in Barbie Video...Girl's chest could be used to produce child pornography, although...there was "no reported evidence that the doll had been used in any way...other than intended."

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Tokidoki's edgy look caused a stir—especially among straight-laced parents trying to raise kids who never step inside a tattoo parlor.

Image 12 of 14 - Controversial Barbie dolls

Tokidoki's edgy look caused a stir—especially among straight-laced parents trying to raise kids who never step inside a tattoo parlor.

Tokidoki's edgy look caused a stir—especially among straight-laced...parents trying to raise kids who never step inside a tattoo parlor.

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Uncredited / AP / Sports Illustrated

Barbie donned a bikini and struck an unapologetic post for the 2014 50th anniversary edition of the 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.'

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Barbie donned a bikini and struck an unapologetic post for the 2014 50th anniversary edition of the 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.'

Barbie donned a bikini and struck an unapologetic post for the 2014...50th anniversary edition of the 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.'

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Mattel

Girl Scouts Barbie hit store shelves in 2014 and many were outraged by the partnership. The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood wrote in a statement: "Partnering with Mattel undermines[the Girl Scouts] vital mission to “build girls of courage, confidence, and character... While Mattel and the Barbie brand benefit enormously from GSUSA’s endorsement, the partnership harms girls. In addition to encouraging sexualization, the Barbie brand idealizes a dangerously impossible body type.”

Image 14 of 14 - Controversial Barbie dolls

Girl Scouts Barbie hit store shelves in 2014 and many were outraged by the partnership. The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood wrote in a statement: "Partnering with Mattel undermines[the Girl Scouts] vital mission to “build girls of courage, confidence, and character... While Mattel and the Barbie brand benefit enormously from GSUSA’s endorsement, the partnership harms girls. In addition to encouraging sexualization, the Barbie brand idealizes a dangerously impossible body type.”

Girl Scouts Barbie hit store shelves in 2014 and many were outraged by...the partnership. The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood wrote in...a statement: "Partnering with Mattel undermines[the Girl Scouts] vital...mission to “build girls of courage, confidence, and character... While Mattel and the Barbie brand benefit enormously from GSUSA’s...endorsement, the partnership harms girls. In addition to encouraging...sexualization, the Barbie brand idealizes a dangerously impossible...body type.”